Green’s Dictionary of Slang

of a man, the act of smoking crack cocaine while a prostitute performs fellatio on him; also as v.

2000

J.J. Connolly Layer Cake 302: A few lick and shine — that’s smoking rocks of crack-cocaine while a hooker sucks your cock.

a male homosexual.

1949		Monteleone Criminal Sl. (rev. edn) 144: lick-box A sodomite.
1999		Gaymart.com Queer Sl. in the Gay 90s 🌐 Lick-Box – A gay man. Term used in the early 1900’s.

see under box n.¹

see separate entry.

to perform cunnilingus.

2004

Tantra at Tahoe 🌐 ‘Going Down? What they called cunnilingus in the last 100 years’ [...] 1990’s – Lick a box; Lick the holy ground.

(Irish) a toady, a sycophant.

1970		C. Brown Down All the Days 175: They trust me, bejasus [...] They know I’m no fucking latchico or general foreman’s lick-arse.
1994		F. Mac Anna Ship Inspector 83: The only reason everyone gets on so well with you is because you’re a lickarse.
2000		P. Howard Miseducation of Ross O’Carroll-Kelly (2004) 132: Jade, who is such a lickorse that Miss Holohan would actually take her word over the word of the deputy head girl.

(Aus.) a toady.

1980

M. Bail Homesickness (1999) 55: Various backers, anonymous lackeys and lickboots, party advisors hovered in the background.

1. a general term of abuse, the implication is of gluttony.

1575		‘Mr S’ Gammer Gurton’s Needle in Whitworth (1997) V ii: Thou liar, lickdish, didst not say the nee’le would be gitten?
1598		in Florio Worlde of Wordes n.p.: Leccapiatti, a licke-dish a scullion in a kitching. [Ibid.] n.p.: Leccapignatte [...] a slouenly greasuie fellow.
1631		H. Chettle Tragedy of Hoffman V I2: Lyer, lyer, licke dish.
1851		Lytton My Novel (1884–5) I Bk VI 487: He had a passion for independence, which [...] was not without grandeur. No lick-platter, no parasite, no toad-eater, no literary beggar.

2. a servant.

1833

‘Black John’ in Out-and-Outer in Spedding & Watt (eds) Bawdy Songbooks (2011) IV 145: Such a leg for a stocking no Johnny could show, / All the lick-dishes envied him much.

a cook.

1594		Lochrine iii 3: You slop-sauce, lickfingers, will you not hear? [F&H].
1699		N. Ward London Spy XII 286: The whole Society of Lick-Fingers, had, with great applause, very highly approv’d of their Brother Skim-Pot’s Advice.

(W.I.) cheap, unpleasant gossip; thus the person who gossips.

1970

F. Collymore Notes for Gloss. of Barbadian Dial. 69: Lick-mouth. ‘A popular dispenser of local gossip. One who kisses and tells.’.

(US) a quick, cursory clean.

1885

Bulletin (Sydney) 25 Jul. 9/1: Prior to the commencement of the opera season, the theatre generally is treated to a ‘dust down and a lickover;’ but in the case of the Theatre Royal that process was rendered unnecessary.

see separate entry.

see separate entry.

1. a bar-man.

1599		Nashe Praise of the Red Herring 70: Let the cunningest lickespiggot swelt his heart out, the beere shal neuer foame or froath in the cupp.
1699		N. Ward London Spy VIII 188: So many Greasie Cooks, Tun-bellied Lick-spiggots, and Fat wheesing Butchers.
1709		Indictment of Sir John Barley Corn 2: The Jury was called over as follows [...] Benjamin Bumper, Giles Lickspigot.
1904		Belfast News-Letter 15 June 6: One or twoi of the old-time names [...] were expressive. Such as ‘bib-all-night,’ ‘lick-spiggot’ and ‘afternoon farmer’.

2. a fellatrix.

1611

Chapman May-Day III i: He’s mine uncle and I love him well, and I know the old lick-spiggot will be nibbling a little when he can come to’t; but I must needs say he will do no hurt. He’s as gentle as an adder that has his teeth taken.

a drunkard.

1652

Mercurius Democritus 27 Oct.–3 Nov. 235: Bench-whister to all Skinkers, Lick-thimbles, Down-right Drunkards, Petty Drunkards, Roaring Boys, Swaggerers, Pot and Half-Pot men, Short-winded Glass-men, Master of the Horse called cut.

(W.I.) to tidy up.

1950

cited in Cassidy & LePage Dict. Jam. Eng. (1980).

(Irish) a toady, a sycophant.

1997

Share Slanguage.

(N.Z.) a very frugal meal.

2003

McGill Reed Dict. of N.Z. Sl.

(W.I.) to carry around or to impart negative gossip.

1996

Allsopp Dict. Carib. Eng. Usage.

see drink on the whip under drink v.

see separate entry.

(W.I., UKVI) to come from the same impoverished background.

1996

Allsopp Dict. Carib. Eng. Usage.

to toady, to be a sycophant.

1948		ref. in L. Mosley Marshall: Hero for Our Times (1982) n.p.: British Foreign Minister Ernest Bevin [...] declared on one occasion in 1948 that the President [Truman] would ‘lick any Jewish arse that promised him a hundred votes’ [R].
1967–8		Baker et al. CUSS 151: Lick his ass Curry favor with a professor.
1970		G.F. Newman Sir, You Bastard 85: Any of your contemporaries would be licking my arse.
1984		‘Derek Raymond’ He Died with His Eyes Open 55: You gotter say lick your arse, sir, touch the hat, bit of the abdabs, morning madam, fine day, then stick the old hand out for a bit of the dropsy.
1997		N. Barlay Curvy Lovebox 128: Nood don’t mind gettin’ his ass licked in public.
1999		Observer Mag. 15 Aug. 14: Drug dealers were my gods [...] I licked their arses.
2000		N. Barlay Crumple Zone 48: Nobody queue-jumps to lick her arse.
2005		P. Temple Broken Shore (2007) [ebook] Jesus, that woman’s cheeky [...] You’re supposed to lick his arse, not threaten to ram an appeal judgment up it.
2021		A. Parks April Dead 36: ‘So that’s you then, back licking his arse, running after him like a bloody puppy’.

to curry favour, to be obsequious, to grovel shamelessly in return for favours, esteem etc.

1966		B. Reckord Skyvers III iii: You’d rather lick up to him ’cos you need a paper.
1991		R. Doyle Van (1998) 630: He was licking up to Jimmy Sr now because the No Hard Feelings wankology had failed.
1996		R. Doyle Woman Who Walked Into Doors 57: She was licking up to Carmel.

toadying, sycophantic.

1965

(con. 1940s) B. Behan Confessions 59: The Department of Lick-Your-Arse Reformers.

(Aus.) general excl. of dismissal, contempt.

2018

G. Gilmore Class Act [ebook] ‘An innocent man’s in prison,’ he said. ‘And a murderer has gone free.’ ‘Oh, lick me’.

a dismissive, abusive excl.

1888–94		‘Walter’ My Secret Life (1966) I 115: I had never licked a cunt before, never had heard of such a thing, though ‘lick my arse’ was a frequent and insulting invitation for boys to each other.
1989		P. Munro Sl. U.

(US campus) a dismissive, abusive excl., such as ‘shut up! you make me sick!’.

1984		Reiner, McKean, Guest & Shearer This Is Spinal Tap [film script] nigel: I’m really influenced by Mozart and Bach, It’s sort of in between those, really, it’s like a Mach piece really, it’s... marty: What do you call this? nigel: Well, this piece is called ‘Lick My Love Pump’.
1989		P. Munro Sl. U.
2001		Epinions 🌐 Turn the amp up to 11, lick my love pump and stuff a cucumber down your pants if you don’t think this movie doesn’t brilliantly lampoon both prog-rock and ’80s arena rock excesses.